Until You Spread Your Wings
by OneLittleBlueJay
Summary: This is the story of Finny's life before and during his time at the Phantomhive mansion. Sebastian and Ciel will also be investigating the institution that was holding Finny while he struggles to erase the identity, S-012, that will serve as a reminder of his traumatic past...yet may also hold the key to ending one of the worst crimes in history. ON HIATUS
1. Identity

Hullo everyone. This is my first time writing fanfiction, and I do hope you'll enjoy what I can offer for now. :) Hopefully my writing will improve as this fanfiction progresses.

Disclaimer: I do not own Kuroshitsuji.

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><p><strong>Chapter 1: Identity<strong>_  
><em>

_Pain._

_It hurts...all I feel is pain._

_Make it stop..make it STOP!_

_STOP IT!_

He screamed as he jolted awake, remembering the moment the doctors had injected him that final time. He would never forget the feeling that surged through him the moment the toxin had taken effect. The blinding hot pain that had coursed through his veins, causing him to lose control of everything: his mind, his body, who he was...everything.

S-012 took a deep ratting breath, trying to calm his nerves. He closed his eyes, almost afraid to look at what was beyond the curtains of the carriage seat. His arms were still stinging from the injections, the blood was still buzzing inside of his veins.

"Are you feeling alright, sir?" a cool voice asked. S-012 jolted upright, hands clenching the red velvet fabric of the seat cushion. Who was he? Where was he? He could tell he was moving, and he could hear the faint _clip-clop_ping of horses.

_Oh..._he remembered, _That __man __came __for __me __with __that __boy..._

He opened his eyes, and looked straight into the red ones of the man sitting across from him. He had raven-black hair, and was wearing a butler's outfit. There was a silver pin on his chest, and the chain of a silver pocket watch could be seen dangling out of his pocket. There was a kid sitting beside him, who looked like he was of noble status. He was frowning, his arms crossed over his chest. He was wearing an eye patch and a sapphire blue ring on his thumb. His hair was ashen-gray, his skin was as pale as porcelain.

"Again...I asked if you were feeling alright, sir," said the older one again, "I can stop the carriage if you would like."

"O-oh..." S-012 responded, his throat scratchy, "I...I'm.."

"Sebastian," said the kid, closing his eyes with an annoyed expression, "do you not think it inappropriate to ask him such a question while he is still recovering from what happened?" Then in a lower voice, "I think it would be wise just to leave him alone until we return home."

"Of course, bocchan," said the man, smiling, "I apologise for my ill-conceived remark."

S-012 looked abashedly at his feet, clenching the fabric under his fingers even tighter. He had to ask the man to do it. He had to. He had refused to open his eyes once they had left the institution until he had entered the carriage, afraid to see what he had longed to see for years.

He had to do it.

"Exc-cuse me," he mumbled, "M-may I make a request?"

"Of course, sir," said the man—Sebastian, "whatever you need to make the ride more comfortable, do not hesitate ask for."

"It's nothing much, r-really..." he said in an even softer voice, "can you..c-can you op..op..."

He paused, trembling, his eyes clenching shut. Could he do this? Could he face the world that had been a dream for him?

"Can I see what it looks like...o-out-outside?"

He could tell Sebastian was giving him a look of confusion, but nonetheless the butler complied. His breath hitched when he heard the rustling sound of the curtains being pulled apart.

"Sir? I have opened the curtains, like you've requested," came the soft voice of the butler. S-012 could see the light through his eyelids. The child shuffled in his seat a bit to better shield his eyes from the bright light.

_Do __it; __you __have __to __do __it..._

He opened his eyes, and everything went white.

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><p><em>Huh? Where am I...?<em>

_It feels..soft..and warm...I like it..it's surrounding me...I'm lying on something soft..._

"E-excuse me!" a high-pitched voice squealed, before a crash was heard. S-012 yelped, his eyes shooting open.

He was dumbfounded.

He was lying in a...was this a bed? Yes, he was lying in a –very comfortable—bed. He was looking up into a dark blue canopy with an intricate floral pattern. The sheets were white—not grimy and dirty—and embraced his body gently. He was wearing a clean white nightshirt...it was so soft. He could smell something sweet beside him.

At his bedpost was a girl wearing huge glasses holding broken shards of what used to be a teapot, which was where the smell was coming from. Upon seeing his awakening, she scrambled to pick up the pieces quicker, only to slip in the spilled tea, and fall to the ground.

"U-UM, I AM VERY SORRY ABOUT THAT P-PLEASE FORGIVE ME!" she shrieked, her voice rising an octave, her hands trembling whilst clutching onto the shards of broken teapot.

S-012 could only stare in silence.

"Maylene!" shouted a voice from outside of the closed door, "what are you DOING in there?"

The door opened to reveal the same boy that had been sitting next to the butler in the carriage. He wore the same eyepatch, the same ring, and had the same bored expression on his face. In the light, S-012 could tell that this boy assumed high stature among the others he had seen so far. He held himself up with authority, with his blue eye giving a piercing glare. This boy could not have been more than 13 years-old, and yet it was still amazing. His clothes were unwrinkled, his socks were perfectly levelled with each other, and his bow tie was tied with the perfect knot.

"Ex-excuse me b-bocchan!" the maid stammered, getting to her feet. She hastily readjusted her glasses and smoothed out the wrinkles in her maid outfit. The boy eyed the mess on the floor, and scoffed, "you have _got _to be more careful."

"Y-yes!" the other exclaimed, standing up straight.

The boy dismissed the maid and then called for his butler. Within seconds, it seemed, the butler was at the boy's side, eyeing the mess on the floor as well.

"Clean this up, Sebastian. And then please inform Finnian here what the situation is."

_Who __is __Finnian?_ S-012 thought.

"Yes, my Lord," replied the butler, before the boy exited the room. S-012 was still frozen in place, fingers wrapped around the blankets that offered a sort of security to him.

"Forgive our maid; as you have already noticed, she can be a bit clumsy at times," muttered the butler, causing S-012's head to perk up.

"What happened?" he asked in a small voice. The butler stood up slowly, holding a dustpan of the mess. He made his way next to the bed and looked down at S-012. He told him to sit up, and S-012 obeyed immediately.

"You lost consciousness in the carriage, so I brought you up to the young master's guest bedroom," he said with a smile, setting the dustpan down and picking up a thermometer on the nightstand next to him. He instructed the boy to hold down the thermometer with his teeth. A minute later the butler took it out and looked at the reading. He 'hmmed' to himself and put it down.

"A slight fever, but it seems you have recovered well, aside from lack of sleep. You should be up and about in no time."

"Thank you," said S-012, lowering his eyes, "but why am I here? What am I going to to?"

"It's exactly the same as I had mentioned before when we first encountered each other. I am offering you a job here. You will be paid a sufficient salary, and will sleep in a room well-prepared t— "

"I-I don't care about that stuff; I'll do anything as long as I can go outside!" S-012 suddenly cried, flinging off the sheets. He immediately covered his hands with his mouth, ashamed of his outburst, feeling dizzy.

"I'm-I'm sorry," he whispered, eyes filling with tears. He was trembling, he knew it.

"Do not worry yourself," said the butler, gently pushing the blonde back onto the bed, "but you need to listen carefully."

S-012 nodded.

"From the information I had gathered from the institute where you were being experimented on, I discovered your personal files—your record. Now I am assuming that you have been labelled with a specific code on the back of your neck—ah, I see it. S-012. Well, I must convey to you that your actual name is Finnian. That is the name you were given at birth, and that is the name we discovered when the Young Master and I searched the medical files of those left alive."

S-012 stared.

"Finnian..." he mumbled, "my name is Finnian."

Sebastian smirked at him.

Finnian. He liked the way it sounded. He was Finnian.

No, he was S-012. That was what he'd been called for his entire life. He wasn't a person, he was an experiment, a specimen.

There was no Finnian.

"Please try to calm yourself," the butler said, clearing his throat. Only then did S—Finn—S-012 feel the tears coursing down his cheeks. He welcomed the familiar feelings, the dark, the helplessness. He couldn't stop. He covered his ears, and shut his eyes tightly, whimpering.

He heard the butler sigh, and only then did S-012 dare to crack one eye open. The butler pulled a handkerchief from his pocket and slowly wiped the tears from his face. It was strange not feeling the tears dry up on his cheeks.

It was...nice.

Sebastian instructed him to breathe slowly and deeply. S-012 did as he was told, and slowly calmed down. After a few moments the butler spoke again.

"Finnian."

"N-no.."

"Listen to me. You are not an experiment. Your name is Finnian. That was the name you were given when you were born, and that is the name you will have for the rest of your life. You are Finnian. Embrace the name, do not reject it It is who you are."

S-012 began shaking in anger. There was no Finnian, so why was this man trying to impose the name on him?

"I'm not that...whatever that is, I'm S-012!" he shouted, his eyes clenching shut, "I'm S-012! That's who I was born as and that's who I am for the rest of my life!" His hands clenched into fists, his knuckles turned white and he could feel a cold sweat forming on his forehead. He was going to lose control again...he was going to hurt someone again.

"Please kindly direct your anger at this wall," the butler said coolly. Suddenly, all the anger, all the agony boiling up inside of him reached the top. His anger flared, and, shutting his eyes, he obeyed, his bare knuckles impacting the wall as much as a brick would. There was a loud crash, and he stood in place, trembling. He opened his eyes slowly, afraid to see what he had done. What he saw both impressed and terrified him. He had managed to punch a fairly big hole into the wall.

The butler smiled.

"This is why we want you to work here, _S-012,_" the butler said, "you possess the strength of at least ten men. Your abilities will be put to use." The familiar label brought him back from his trance and he fell against the bed, covering his face with his arms.

"I'll do it," he said breathlessly, "just let me go out—"

"DAMN IT! THAT'S THE SECOND BLOODY TIME TODAY!" roared a voice from afar. The butler sighed, and stood up.

"If you will excuse me...Finnian. I believe our chef has managed to burn down the kitchen once again...oh, and do call me Mr. Sebastian. You will address me as such as in the duration your employment here. I encourage you to take on your name, for that is what you will be referred to as."

"Yes...S-Sebastian-san."

Sebastian stepped outside of the room, and looked back at the broken boy on the bed.

"You are free to go outside in the meantime. The specifics of your work will be discussed once you have settled in the Phantomhive mansion. Excuse me."

And he left.

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><p>Thus ends the first chapter of my first ever fanfiction. Reviews and suggestions are greatly appreciated.<p>

Until next time,

-Jay


	2. First Encounters

Hello again. Many thanks to **Inkweaver12 **and **HungerGamesGirl12 **for your kind reviews. :) They motivate me to keep writing. Now without further ado, I present to you all the second chapter!

Disclaimer: I do not own Kuroshitsuji.

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><p><strong>Chapter 2: First Encounters<strong>

He had been given no instructions, so S-1—_Finnian_, had no idea what he was supposed to do. Standing up, he glanced anxiously around the room, an innate fear of realizing this all was a dream rising inside of him. Any second now, and a doctor would flip a switch and engulf him in darkness, and inject him with something else.

_He shrieked as both the image of his house and mother disappeared before his eyes, only to be replaced with a man wearing white clothes and a pair of glasses on his face._

_"You see, S-102, you could have this all back…we can let you go back to your home, but only if you are willing to be our little…guinea pig."_

_S-012 shut his eyes tightly, remembering the cold dreamless nights at the orphanage…then back to the fire, when a man in black had come and taken his mother before his very eyes, before the entire was engulfed in flames._

_"I'll do anything," he rasped, wrapping his arms around his knees and burying his head in them, "I just want to go outside…"_

Finnian whimpered, trembling, and covered his face with his hands. This surely must be a dream, another test, another lie…

"Ehh…F-Finnian?" Finnian started and his head shot to the door. There was the maid again, only she didn't look as nervous as she had before. She was wearing huge spectacles that covered her expression, and she was teetering from foot to foot. She held a tray in her hands that had what looked like medicine. Finnian hesitantly stepped back a foot.

"Um…b-bocchan told me that you were injured and needed some medicine…so I brought some up here," the maid stammered quietly. Then, noticing Finnian's hesitation, and remembering what she had been told about the boy, she reassured him, "Um, but don't worry! I'm not a doctor…and this medicine is going to help you, so…"

Finnian couldn't trust her yet. That's what every doctor had said before injecting him with something lethal. But he was too tired to fight, so he mumbled, "Okay," and sat back down on the bed. The maid entered the room and sat down next to Finnian, and began rubbing the lacerations on his face with a liquid that stung and made his eyes water.

"By the way, my name is Maylene…eh, but you probably already heard bocchan yelling it," she said, letting out a nervous laugh.

"Maylene-san…" the boy repeated, and Maylene's face lit up.

The maid checked his expression every so often to make sure that he was okay, before moving on to his arms. She managed to bandage and clean his right arm, but when she moved on to his left, Finnian yelped and scooted away.

"I AM SO SORRY, SO SO SORRY, AHHHHH!" Maylene shrieked, going into panic mode whilst fussing with the bandages in her hand. She eventually became so panicked that she unravelled the entire roll of bandages. She stood up, and ended up tripping over them, falling to the ground. The maid lay there in silence, her face beet red, until she heard a small chuckle. Her head shot up, and she saw Finnian laughing! It was the first real smile she had seen from the boy, and it lightened her heart. Finnian, smiling, offered her his hand, and pulled her up. Unfortunately, he was still not used to his new strength, so he ended up throwing her into the air. Maylene cried out again arms flailing, but Finnian managed to catch her easily. They both looked at each other for a second, then burst out laughing. Finnian gently let her down and bent down to pick up the unravelled bandages.

"It's okay, Maylene-san," he said as he picked them up, "It's just…my other arm hurts a lot, and…" He glanced in the other direction. Maylene nodded in silent understanding, but she gave Finnian a huge smile nevertheless. She then pulled out a small watch from her pocket, opened the lid—Finnian caught a brief glance of a picture of a woman wearing all back and holding some sort of weapon; he would have to ask her about that later—and moaned, "Oh dear, I have to go dust the clocks right now…oh no, Sebastian-san will be so mad!"

Finnian saw a faint blush dusting the maid's cheeks when she mentioned the butler's name, but before he could say anything, Maylene had taken the bandages from his hands and rushed out of the room.

Now he was alone again, but he was feeling much better, and less afraid. He sat down yet again to think about his situation.

From what he had been told, he was in a mansion, so therefore, in the place of a wealthy nobleman. When Finnian stepped out of his room, he bolted back inside. The halls were enormous, with beautiful paintings and murals all over the walls. A notably big painting was located on the wall opposite to him, and it pictured the same boy that was in the carriage. Underneath it said the words "Earl Ciel Phantomhive." So the master of this house was...Ciel Phantomhive...he vaguely remembered the name...where had it come from again?

_He vaguely registered a bunny doll hanging from one of the kids' grasp…it was a peculiar doll, with one eye a button and the other a bead…but there was no doubt that this doll was the only source of comfort for this boy…_

Oh, yes. One of the dolls the kids had to share in the institution was from the Funtom. Co...whose owner was a Phantomhive.

At least he was in good hands.

The hallway itself was quite overwhelming to the poor boy, who was used to being stuck in small quarters with only the bricks to look at. In a sense, it was claustrophobia reversed. He sought the cramped up space where nobody could invade, and now, he was out in the open. He hesitantly took a few steps forward, hearing the echo reverberate.

He was alone...

Finnian's heartbeat sped up significantly, and he tried to remember what his focus was...

_Outside._

Right.

The boy glanced out of his room into the dark hallway, and then back to a..._window!_

Of course! This was the easiest way to seeing his freedom, the easiest way to go where he had always wanted to go, where his little bird had wanted to do, all he had to do was open the curtains...yes, just pull them apart and-

"Excuse me, Finnian."

"Y-yes!" he stammered, whirling around to face none other than the young Earl. Ciel Phantomhive entered the room, hands behind his back.

"Ah, I see Maylene has tended to your injuries. Right then, I do believe my butler has gone through all proper introductions," the boy said, "although it was uncanny of him to simply leave you here with no orders or instructions. Do sit down; I have to discuss some things with you."

Finnian tried not to let the look of disappointment cloud his features. He hesitantly sat down in a chair next to the night stand. The Phantomhive boy sat opposite him in a couch. He crossed his legs, and closed his eyes for a moment or two.

"The place where we found you," he began, opening his eyes and giving him a piercing gaze, "it was an institution for human experimentation, was it not?"

Finnian nodded, and asked the question that had been nagging at the back of his mine ever since he had arrived.

"How did you find me? Why do you need me?"

"Finnian, you know of Funtom Co., correct?" Then seeing Finnian nod, Ciel continued, "Well, the Phantomhive family has been in the company for generations, and I am now the head of it. As I have successfully led this company to—"

"Wait!" Finnian interrupted, "I'm sorry but...you are the head of the largest toy manufacturing company in the country?"

Ciel cleared his throat, glaring at him. Finnian winced.

"I will only ask once that you do not interrupt me. You work for me now, and must display exemplary behaviour in and out of my presence. I will forgive you this one time." The young Earl seemed to hold his breath for a moment, and then sighed in exasperation.

"Damn butler and his manner lessons..." he muttered under his breath. Finnian was silent.

"Look," Ciel finally said, seeming to talk in a more relaxed tone, "Queen Victoria, her Majesty, had asked the Phantomhive manor to investigate the institution where you were found. You see, we have close ties with Her Majesty; we are her…watchdogs."

The room's temperature seemed to cool with those words.

"And as Her Majesty's watchdog, I am responsible for getting rid of those who taint Her Majesty's kingdom...and the Phantomhive family's as well."

The boy's eyes reflected a purple aura of anger. This time, Finnian could have sworn he heard booming thunder in the distance.

"My goal is to rid England of the scum that arrive on its doorstep. In order to do so I need the most elite servants. You will find that our three other servants are highly gifted a particular aspect. Yours is your incredible strength."

The boy looked at Finnian once again.

"Your specific duties will be covered once you have settled, as my butler previously mentioned. I came up to introduce you to my business. I assure you that you will not be bothered by those who threatened your life."

His eyes softened the tiniest fraction.

"I know what it's like to be trapped," he said in a low voice, gently placing his fingers over his eyepatch. Finnian's heart sped up a notch.

"But under the Phantomhive name, you will never be in that sort of danger again. You are bound to this mansion, and by protecting it you are ensuring your own safety."

Finnian felt his eyes water, and before he knew it, he had jumped out of his chair and kneeled at the boy's feet.

"I will do everything in my power to protect this mansion!" he said in a shaky voice, "just as long as I can be outside."

Ciel looked down at him.

"But of course. You are free to do as you please when you complete your duties. Now if you'll come with me, please. I will introduce you to our steward, Mr. Tanaka. He will give you a thorough tour of the mansion. Once it is completed you will be free to roam about until supper. Try not to break anything."

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><p>Once the tour was over with (Finnian almost fainted when he saw Tanaka shrink like a deflated balloon until the butler, Sebastian, had informed him that it was a regular occurrence), Finnian was as eager as ever to go outside. He walked quickly down the main staircase, past a huge painting of the previous Earl and his lady, and slowed down to a regular pace, his footsteps echoing across the marble floor.<p>

He reached the two wooden doors and froze, his hand inches away from the handle.

_I can do this._

He stepped back, and then ran full-on into the doors, pushing them wide open. He ran out into the yard, and opened his eyes.

He almost fainted again when he saw everything.

The sky...it was so blue! The sun was shining down upon the luscious green garden, sweet aromas reaching his nose wherever he turned. Flowers of many different colours were scattered about. He saw a few puffy white clouds in the sky, heard the tricking of a fountain, heard the faint chirping of birds.

There were hedges about, trimmed perfectly into different shapes, some that Finnian could identify easily, some into shapes that he had never seen before. He looked behind him, and then saw how massive the Phantomhive mansion truly was. It seemed to stretch out in both directions forever. The windows were pristine, the roof, spotless...the vines wrapping along the walls in a way that promoted beauty...

The world was beautiful, so full of colour and light and life...it was almost too much for the boy. He could only stand there and be amazed, feeling tears coursing down his cheeks. He forgot all of his pain, his worry, everything that had tortured his mind. This was where he had belonged the whole time, this is what he had missed out on growing up in locked cages and being tortured daily.

He never wanted to go back.

He tried to stop the tears from coming, but they wouldn't. This time however, they felt good. They weren't tears of pain, they were tears of happiness.

"Hey, what are you doing out here!" came a gruff voice from behind him. Finnian could barely hear it; he was too far away from the real world, from everything—

"HEY, CAN YOU HEAR ME KID! And what's on the back of your neck here...?"

Finnian froze, feeling a hand grip his shoulder. He whirled around to be met with a man with short blonde hair wearing what seemed to be a chef's attire. He was holding something that looked like a flamethrower…just three times bigger. Finnian clapped his hand to the back of his neck, concealing his code, and stared with wide eyes at the flamethrower.

"Uh, what are you staring at, kid?" asked the man, then, following his gaze to the flamethrower, said, "Oh, this? This is what I used to heat the steak…shame it turned to ash, though. Ah well, I'm sure Sebastian will manage to get something ready for us." Finnian returned his gaze to the ground, and the man seemed to relax, seeing the boy's tears. He looked down at him, and smiled.

"So you're the new guy, eh? The name's Baldroy. I'm the chef around here. Just call me Bard."

Finnian stared at him, still crying. He ducked his head, sniffling.

"Hey, hey, easy there," said Bard, uncomfortable, "Uh...dinner will be served soon, uh...Sebastian told me to get you...Finnian, is it?"

The boy nodded, and Bard made a 'tch' sound.

"Nah, Finnian's too long. I'll just call you Finny; is that alright?" he asked, patting him on the head, grinning. Finny looked up, smiling.

"Yes!"

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><p>Thanks to all who read this. Reviews are greatly appreciated.<p>

Until next time,

-Jay


	3. Food for Thought

_Thank you, _everyone, who has read and reviewed this story.

I claim no rights to Kuroshitsuji.

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><p><strong>Chapter 3: Food for Thought<strong>

Once Bard had reassured Finny (oh, he quite liked this nickname now) that his flamethrower was in his hands for the _sole _purpose of cooking, Finny followed the cook back to the mansion. He regretted leaving behind the glorious beauty of the garden, but his stomach was growling, and he couldn't blame it—he hadn't eaten in days.

Bard opened the doors and Finny had to freeze for a moment to take in what he was seeing. He had been too focused on getting outside to really pay attention to all the rooms he was running through, but this main hall was gorgeous. Glass chandeliers hung from the ceiling, glittering, and a huge staircase wound from the centre to different rooms on the second floor. Pictures of previous earls were hanging from the walls. The floor was made of marble and supported rugs with beautiful designs. There was not a speck of dust to be seen. It was, in Finny's eyes, perfect.

However, he was shaken from his awe when Bard tried to poke him on the forehead (Finny yelped, backing away) and said, "Come on, kid! No time to linger; that butler will have our heads if we're late again."

"R-right!" the boy exclaimed, and quickly followed Bard to a room where he found Maylene and Tanaka. He glanced around, noticing that this room was not has pleasant or decorated as the other ones. It was a simple room with stone walls and a wooden table with two benches. There was a furnace in the corner and a bookshelf next to it. Bard gestured for Finny to sit down next to him on the bench.

The place reminded him of the research facilities where he was held…Finny shook his head, trying to clear away the thoughts threatening to take over again.

"Um…where are Sebastian-san and…Ciel-bocchan?" he asked quietly, taking his place beside Bard.

"Ohh, bocchan and Sebastian-san eat in a different room; we aren't allowed in there unless we're serving food," Maylene answered, "B-but it's perfectly fine! The food we eat is top notch no matter where we eat!"

As if it were magic, Sebastian suddenly appeared in the doorway holding four platters. He gently set them on the table, murmured, "Enjoy, Finnian, I do believe you'll find this food to be excellent to your taste," and silently left. Finny opened the lid of the platter, and almost fell backwards.

This food….this couldn't be real! There was roast duck, roast beef, salads made from the best greens, sauces made from scratch, dessert platters, Tupperware platters, platters to hold the platters, cups of tea, milk, honey….it was a panoply of food, and Finny almost felt sick looking at it.

"How…how many people did it take to make this?" he wondered aloud, and Bard started laughing.

"Sebastian made all of it himself!" he exclaimed, laughing more at the flabbergasted expression on the boy's face. Finny flushed and began eating, almost feeling guilty of his fortune.

"So, what do you think of bocchan, Finny!" exclaimed Maylene, while Tanaka began sipping his tea.

"Um...he's someone who deserves much respect," Finny said shyly, "and I owe him my life…"

"Ah, that's our bocchan alright!" Bard exclaimed, "he's a bit scary, but his status is unmatched. He's clever, the little brat-I mean, kid." Finny chuckled, taking another bite of the delicious scones that Sebastian had prepared for an evening snack after dinner.

"So," Bard said quietly, leaning in so Finny could hear, "What do you think of Sebastian?"

"Ohhhh~," Maylene said, swooning. Her face was pink. Finny looked at Bard questioningly, who answered "She does that a lot in front of him. Not sure why. But what do you think of him?"

"Um...I'm not sure, actually..um...he's a bit..."

"Intimidating?" asked Bard, grinning. Finny nodded, flushing.

"I-it...it's rather hard to believe a butler can perform such tasks with such quality and perfection," he stammered, "it's almost as if he's not human."

Everyone was silent for a moment, until...

"Excuse me, everyone," said Sebastian who entered the room, smiling.

All of the servants yelped, except for Tanaka, who looked up from his tea with an "oh-ho-ho."

"EhhhEHHEHHehhh Sebastian-san, w-what are you d-d-doing here?" Maylene stammered, her face going beet red.

"Ah, I simply came to check up on our newest servant. I trust that you have all become acquaintances by now?" asked the butler, offering Maylene a smirk.

Maylene swooned. Bard rolled his eyes.

"H-hai!" said Finny, "Everyone is really nice to me...ah...I enjoyed the food, S-Sebastian-san!"

"Ah, but how could you not? As the butler of the Phantomhive estate, my job is to ensure that everything is of top quality, including the food. Surely a butler that can't do this isn't worth his salt." Finny's eyes widened, this man was truly some sort of god...or a robot.

"Ahem," Sebastian said, a bit uncomfortable at the boy staring at him, "once you finish dessert, you and the others will wash up and get ready for bed. Your duties will be described in full tomorrow. The Young Master is having a few guests over to discuss some business plans, so I trust that you will all remain quiet and act proper. Tomorrow morning you will promptly resume your reading lessons. Good night."

And with that he left.

"G-goodnight, Sebastian-san," said Maylene weakly, holding her nose to prevent a nosebleed.

Later that evening the servants had gathered in a room with a fireplace to relax and get to know each other a bit more. Maylene had changed into a simple nightgown and had let down her hair, while Bard had changed into some trousers and had lent finny a nightgown since he had no other clothes.

Finny was a little shaken. He had taken a warm bath in a marble bathtub with the temperature set just right, and bubbles popping everywhere. It was too good to be true: he was used to being pushed into a shower, being drenched with various liquids, some chemicals, being scrubbed down harshly, and then being thrown back into his cell, shivering, to dry.

When he had gotten out of the bathtub this time, he had slowly wrapped one of the large fluffy towels around his body, inhaling the scent of it. He had cried out suddenly when he saw the S-012 imprinted on his neck and immediately grabbed a scrubber.

Bard had barged into the bathroom after hearing the boy yelp, and was met the sight of Finny scrubbing the back of his neck so severely, that he would surely draw blood if he didn't stop. The boy seemed to be in some sort of trance, for his eyes stared blankly at the mirror as his hands worked.

"Hey, what are you doing?" he had shouted, prying the scrubber out of his hands. Finny had given him a glare so deep that Bard took a step back. The boy snatched back the scrubber, looked at it, and the broke it in half without saying a word.

"O-oi..." Bard stuttered, his eyes widening. All of a sudden the darkness in Finny's eyes had lifted, and the light had returned. He looked at the two pieces of the cleaning tool in his hands, then back at Bard.

"O-oh...I'm not sure what...came over me..." he said shakily, dropping the pieces to the ground. He swayed, and Bard caught him before he could hit the floor.

Now the two were afraid to look at each other, sitting in front of the fireplace.

"Hey...are you gonna be okay?" asked Bard. Finny shook his head, closing his eyes.

"I don't want to go back there..." he said, trembling. Bard saw the young boy's fear and hesitantly put a hand on his shoulder.

"Hey...I know we've all just met you and all that, but you're gonna like it here, promise."

"Yes! Living in the Young Master's home is nothing short of a delight!" exclaimed Maylene, rising up from her chair. She crossed over to Finny and knelt down next to him. "And we're all a family here! We support each other."

Finny smiled down at the bespectacled lady, his eyes softening.

"Ah, yes. The Phanthomhive manor holds many secrets," said Tanaka, now transformed into his full human size. Finny yelped and almost fell over, but managed to stop himself as Tanaka continued:

"But the one thing that is certain about the Phantomhive's servants is that they were hired by Ciel-bocchan and Sebastian-san because they know you possess certain qualities that will help protect the mansion. The Young Master places his trust in youuuuu..."

And then the house steward deflated back to mini-Tanaka.

Finny attempted to smile, but shrugged off Bard's hand. He couldn't—wouldn't let anybody touch him yet...not yet.

Maylene and Bard seemed to understand the boy's inner turmoil, and merely gave him sympathetic smiles.

The clock with elegant wood carvings struck midnight. The servants bade each other good night, and returned to their separate bedrooms, leaving Finny alone.

He was wondering if they had completely forgotten about him until Sebastian opened the door quietly, holding a lantern. He put a finger to his lips, and gestured for the boy to follow him.

"My sincerest apologies. I believed I had instructed Baldroy to lead you to your room, but it seems he has forgotten. I will deal with him tomorrow. Now, the Young Master is sleeping so we must not make a sound when we cross the hall adjacent to his room."

Finny nodded, soft footsteps padding behind Sebastian's silent ones. At last, they rounded a corner to the hall where Finny's room was.

"Now, do try to sleep, for tomorrow you will begin training in order to become a true Phantomhive servant," said the butler.

"Training..?" Finny said, yawning, before Sebastian gently pushed him into the room, closed the door, and blew out the candles.

Finny was too tired to even try to interpret the butler's words. He let himself fall onto the bed (it smelled of lavender), and clutched the sheets around him for security as he finally let exhaustion overtake him.

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><p>Well, that's all I am able to do for now. I will update soon! Reviews are greatly appreciated.<p>

Until next time,

-Jay


	4. Ignite

Hello readers! This chapter is going to be a bit rough. I spent a lot of time thinking about how to write it, and while the end result isn't quite at the level I was hoping to be, I hope it suffices nevertheless.

There IS some BardxFinny in this chapter, but take note: I do not plan to make this a pairing in the story.

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><p><strong>Chapter 4: Ignite<strong>

"_Haha, I got it mom!" he yelled, running across the field of sunflowers. He caught the ball right before it hit the ground. His mother arrived, huffing from the long run up the hill._

"_You sure are fast for a small boy!" she laughed, gathering up her skirt in her hands. She smiled down at her son, patting him on the forehead, and he smiled back up at her. They both stood in the field for a moment, watching the clouds pass overhead from the fresh breeze that made their hair whip back and forth._

"_Now, let's see if you can catch this one!" his mother yelled, snatching the ball and throwing it as far as she could. The ball flew over the fence, through the trees. To illustrate how far the ball had gone, his mother yelled, "Take your time!" and winked at her son. The young boy ran after it, laughing while inhaling the scent of sunflowers that scattered the fields and ended near the treeline._

_Unbeknownst to him, his mother had walked back into the cottage to wait. She had not locked the door._

_The boy ran until he reached the fence, and simply leaped over it. His feet hit the ground hard, but he kept on running. He spotted the ball a few yards away near a barn and eagerly scrambled over to it. He picked it up, carefully brushing off the dirt, and made his way back to the cottage, not noticing that the fence had been knocked down._

_When he reached his home, he sniffed. Something seemed horribly wrong…he could smell burning wood._

_He gasped when he saw the slightest bit of smoke creep out of the closed doors of the barn. He ran over to the front of the building, threw open the doors, and screamed, dropping the ball._

_Flames. That was all that he could see. The interior of the barn was engulfed in flames and smoke, making it impossible to see anything. He could hear the bleating of goats, the mooing of cows, the shrieks of chickens as they perished in the fire. The smoke stung his eyes, made them water, and he found it increasingly hard to breathe. His instincts told him to run; and then: to find his mother._

"_Mom!" he yelled, fleeing from the horror. He jumped over the fence and dashed back up the hill to where his mother had been standing only minutes ago._

"_Mom! Where are you? Mom!" he cried, eyes frantically scanning the sunflower field for her._

"_No..." he whispered as he spotted the cottage. It was glowing orange. The door was open._

"_No!" he cried, sprinting as fast as he could, flying over the field, his feet barely touching the ground. His chest was heaving and beads of sweat were rolling down his face. He was almost there, just a few more yards, and..._

"_MOM!" he yelled, flinging open the door. He froze, seeing just how bad the fire was. It had spread to every room of the house, and from the back window, he could see it engulfing the sunflower field._

"_Help!" he heard someone cry faintly from upstairs. He voice belonged to his mother._

"_I'm coming!" he yelled, running quickly across the room to the burning stairs. He clambered up them, trying to step over flames and gritting his teeth in pain whenever the heat reached his face. Luckily the flames had just begun to scorch the stairs, so he arrived to the top rather quickly. From there he reached a hallway. He didn't know which way to go, but he could see that fire was surrounding the walls of both sides._

"_Mom, say something!" he pleaded, begging whatever greater powers existed to help him find his mother. He heard no voice, but heard a faint thump from the left. That's all it took; he ran down the corridor and entered what seemed to be his bedroom._

_He saw his mother standing by his bed, an expression of relief quickly turning to horror as flames began to cover her body. Her mouth opened in a silent scream._

"_Mom, can you hear me! I'm going to save you mom! Mom, hang on! Mom? MOM! MOM!" he screamed, trying to reach her._

"_MOM!" he screamed again, tearing his vocal chords, "MOM! ANYBODY! PLEASE!" He couldn't save her, he couldn't save her..._

_Fire...smoke...he couldn't breathe. He could only watch in horror as the flames engulfed his mother, could only watch her horrified gaze and hear her finally begin screaming as she burned to death._

_No._

_He had to get out. He couldn't die...but...couldn't he? There was nothing left to live for, nothing left..._

_He could only barely register the sight of someone running up to him, covering his mouth with something. Then everything went black._

_When he woke up, he was wrapped in...rope? Where was he? He could sense that he was moving...he heard the sound of horses galloping...was he in a carriage? There was something covering his face. He could feel dried up tear tracks on his cheeks._

"_Hey...I think he woke up," a gruff voice said. He felt the horses stop moving. Somebody snatched the bag off of his face._

_He opened his eyes, squinting. He was in a carriage, and there were three men sitting around him. One had jet-black hair that was tied in a ponytail, with black beady eyes and a scar running down from his right eye to his neck. Another was bald, wearing glasses. The third one had short curly brown hair, and 3 teeth missing._

"_What's your name, boy?" prodded the bald one._

_He wet it lips, trying to form words. He opened his mouth, but nothing came out._

"_I said, what is your name!" the bald man said, louder this time. He slapped him across the cheek._

"_I...I can't remember!" he cried out finally, his eyes widening. He had no idea who he was._

_All he could remember was the fire...the flames...the blank stare of his mother as the flames covered her body._

_He screamed._

_He couldn't feel anything, couldn't hear the men shouting for him to be quiet, didn't see the one with black hair pull out a needle, couldn't feel the injection._

_All he could do was scream._

_He didn't feel the drowsiness overpowering him until it was too late._

_He was cold. Shivering. Alone. He sat up slowly, blinking. He was in a dark room with a stone floor. The ropes were gone, but it didn't help at all. He winced, feeling bruises on his wrists and ankles from the rope. He felt a chill on his head...his hair had been shaved off_

_The back of his neck was stinging. He touched the back of it, and felt the imprint of something on it. He traced the markings, and figured out that the symbols 'S-012' marked his neck. ._

_So that was who he was. S-012._

_His heart rate sped up as he heard footsteps approaching, the sound reverberating off of the slimy wet walls. The door opened, and a doctor walked in. S-012 scrambled to the corner of his cell, trying to hide himself from the oncoming person. It was to no avail; the doctor knelt in front of the boy, and told him to open his eyes._

_He had no choice but to do so. He looked into the doctor's eyes, recognized the jet black hair and the scar, and was terrified to see the evil ambition glinting in his black pupils, along with something that resembled a hint of madness. He could see his own terrified expression reflected in the doctor's eyes. The doctor stood up and motioned to someone to enter the cell as well._

"_This is the new one. Make sure he doesn't kill himself," he said to a boy about the same age as him. This boy had brown hair that was down to his shoulders. He wore a blank expression, and he was wearing a white outfit. There were several bruises on his arms and legs. The boy stepped inside of the cell, and then the door closed, enveloping the two in darkness._

_The two didn't speak. The only thing to be heard was their ragged breathing. S-012 buried his head in his arms, trying to block out the fear that was taking over his body and mind. His brain flashed back to the final moments of consciousness before he had gotten here, where he had seen his mother being swept up by the fire, her pleading, broken expression—_

"_So…you're the new one," said a flat voice._

"_Huh?" S-012 asked, before realizing that tears were trickling down his cheeks. He sniffed and wiped them away with a shaking hand._

"_What's your name?" the boy across him asked, this time with a hint of voice inflection._

"_I-I don't remember," he said, stuttering._

"_That's okay," said the other, "what did they label you as? I'm S-011."_

_Silence._

_A faint memory of a searing pain being administered to his neck. The demand to hold still. The buzzing of a razor as lumps of strawberry-blonde hair fell to the ground. The person who gave him a mirror to see the new identity that had been imprinted on his neck._

"_S-012," he whispered._

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><p>"NO!" Finny screamed, sitting up straight in his bed. He clutched the sheets desperately in his hand, his eyes wide with terror. He had been forced to relive that horrible day, the day where he had been taken to that horrible place...<p>

His chest was heaving, his lungs struggling to breathe in oxygen. He could feel beads of sweat rolling down his face. He was stricken with fear from his nightmare-his memory. He had to find someone. He couldn't be alone. He wouldn't survive alone anymore.

Gradually his breaths became steadier, his heart rate slowing down back to normal. He slowly lowered himself out of the bed and staggered to the dresser next to his bed, where an unlit candle rested. His fingers fumbled with the match as he struggled to create a flame, and he winced as the flame suddenly sparked to life. The boy could only stare, mesmerized, at the tiny fire burning on his matchstick. He felt as if he was sinking into it, as if he would be transported back to that dreadful morning when he lost his mother-

"OW!" Finny yelped. The flame had burned its way down the match, burning his hand. He dropped the match in pain, only to shriek as the flame began to spread along the carpet. He quickly ran to his bed and snatched the pillow, slamming it down on top of the flame. Luckily the flames died down, leaving him in the darkness again.

He stood up, feeling for the tiny box of matches again. This time, he was able to light it without any fuss, and breathed a sigh of relief as the flame burned steadily on the candle wick. Candle in hand, he made his way outside of the room assigned to him, and walked slowly down the hall.

He went to the door that was next to him and hesitated before opening it. This was Bard's room wasn't it? Then he'd be okay...

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><p>"Unhhghh," Bard groaned as he heard a loud clang coming from one of the servants' room. It was probably that new boy, Finny...interrupting his beauty sleep, he was.<p>

He groaned again, a hand reaching up to shield his face as he saw a light steadily getting closer to his room. He could see someone's shadow outside, unmoving.

"Hey! Are you coming in or what?" he growled, squinting. Someone yelped, and the shadow froze. Slowly, the door to Bard's room was opened, creaking as a blonde-haired boy stuck his head in timidly, holding a candle close to his chest.

"Ah, so it _was_ you making that noise earlier," Bard mumbled, yawning, "what's up?"

The boy looked down as he entered the room, the door closing with a faint click. His bangs were covering his eyes, and the candle shook slightly in his hands as he clutched it hard enough to make his knuckles white.

"Hey, kid...you alright?" Bard asked cautiously, sitting up in his bed. A rare look of concern was etched upon his features as he took in the sight of the shivering servant.

"H-hey...Bard-san...do you ever have bad dreams sometimes?" Finny asked, a note of hysteria in his voice, "or n-nightmares?" The candle began to shake more violently in the grip of the servant.

"Uh...I guess..sometimes," responded the cook, scratching the back of his head, "why do you ask? Di you have one?"

_Obviously, you twit,_ a voice in the cook's head sneered. Bard rolled his eyes, thankful that the boy wasn't looking.

Finny slowly raised his head to rest his gaze on Bard. His teal eyes were sparkling with unshed tears.

"Uhm...w-well...I had a very bad dream about something that h-happened before I came here," he whimpered, "a-and..I can't be alone any..an-anymore..."

Bard sighed inwardly. Really, this guy was like a child more than anything else. But how could he blame him? After all, the most he had heard about the new servant was that he was locked up in some facilitation for over a year. He couldn't live life in a place like that.

"Hey, kid..." he said awkwardly, watching as Finny tried unsuccessfully to wipe the tears away before they fell, "you're not alone here anymore. I mean, we the Phantomhive servants...we all had pretty rough pasts before we came here. But things get better here, okay?"

"O-okay," Finny said, barely able to talk. The tears were rolling freely now, and his nose was beginning to get runny. He was going to break any second now; the memories from his nightmare were flooding back to him. "B-but..can I just..I—can't...alone..."

"Hey; it's fine don't worry," Bard said quietly, watching Finny break down in front of him. He couldn't leave the guy like this. He moved to one side of his bed, motioning for Finny to join him, and turned over on his side to give the guy some privacy. Finny attempted a shaky smile through his tears, and set the candle down on the nightstand beside the cook's bed. He sat down on the edge of the bed, sniffling, trying to stop the tears. He was shaking with the effort. He could not—could NOT let the memories take over him.

Bard sighed, hearing the unsuccessfully muffled whimpers of the frail servant. Obviously this wasn't going to pass by smoothly.

"Hey," he said, grunting as he sat up, "look at me."

The boy hesitated, and then obeyed, revealing puffy eyes and a runny nose. Bard moved silently, slinking his arm around the boy's waist, pulling him closer. Finny gasped, his eyes widening. The cook was hugging him.

The boy froze at first, heart thumping in his ears. He wasn't used to being touched in the way…Why was Bard doing this for him? They had only known each other for a few hours so why...

Finny couldn't remember being embraced like this since he was a child. He had missed the reassuring presence of another beside him, one who would take care of him and look out for him. He welcomed the warmth and relief that surged inside of him as he relaxed in the cook's hold, resting his head against the other's chest. Tears came into his eyes again.

"H-hey! Why are you crying now?" Bard stuttered, feeling the boy's tears soak his night clothes. Man, he had taken it too far, hadn't he...dammit; he just made the poor guy feel even more uncomfortable! The little voice inside his head agreed. But what Finny said next shocked him.

"It's nice to be hugged again," the boy spilled. He couldn't lie. Bard's brow twitched at the boy's blunt honesty, and patted him on the head.

"Feeling better?" he asked teasingly. He felt the boy nod.

The two servants sat like that for several minutes. Then Bard began to feel a little bit uncomfortable. Honestly, he wasn't used to this kind of stuff either. He cleared his throat and said, "Hey..kid…I know you're comfortable and stuff, but uh…I kind of want to go back to sleep."

"Ah! I'm s-sorry!" the boy stammered, and for once, Bard began to see the kid's real personality breaking through the guarded exterior the boy was (unsuccessfully) trying to maintain. Finny sighed, and reluctantly broke away from the embrace.

"H-hey...Bard-san...is it okay if I stay here just for tonight?" he asked timidly, refusing to look into Bard's questioning face, "I...I just can't be alone...not tonight..."

"Oi, oi, it's fine already," said Bard, scratching the back of his head, "Just…don't mention what just happened to Maylene or Tanaka, alright?" Finny nodded, and looked questioningly at the cook.

"Where…?"

"In this bed, kid. I'll take the floor." Bard could see Finny's appreciative smile, knowing that the boy would not be comfortable sharing a bed with him. He ruffled the kid's hair and moved to the floor.

"Are you sur—"

"Relax, kid. I can survive for one night." Finny whispered, "Thank you," before wrapping himself up in the covers.

The boy was pulled out of his thoughts as Bard said, "By the way...I tend to snore pretty loudly. Sorry if that becomes a bother. Just deal with it."

"It's okay…and…thank you again."

"Whatever."

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><p>"Good morning, bocchan."<p>

"Go away..."

"I'm afraid I can't do that, bocchan."

A whoosh of curtains. Blinding light. A groan.

_Damn butler._

"I'm afraid I have an urgent matter at hand, bocchan."

A moment of relief as Sebastian's shadow blocks the sunlight.

"…Bocchan, this requires you to be awake. And sitting, preferably."

"Fine, fine…"

Five minutes later, Ciel Phantomhive is sipping tea, sitting upright in his bed, his left eye widening as it scans the headline on the newspaper.

_Research Institution Burned to the Ground! Accident? Arson? Body Missing!_

"Sebastian…you don't think…this means…"

"I'm afraid your suspicions are correct. It seems our young Finnian isn't as safe as we had thought."

Another sip of tea.

"You do know what this means. Am I correct?"

Sigh.

"Unfortunately, I do. Are we going to have to bring him along?"

"…I'm afraid so, bocchan."

The picture of a man stares back from the newspaper, madness etched upon his features, jet black hair tied in a ponytail and a scar running down from his right eye to his neck.

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><p>As always, I am extremely grateful for reviews.<p>

Until next time,

-Jay


	5. The First Morning

Hullo, readers! I apologize again for my long absence.

This chapter might seem like a bit of a filler, and I apologize for that. Things will start picking up soon! ^^;

I don't own anything in Kuroshitsuji

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><p><strong>Chapter 5: The First Morning<strong>

Sebastian was walking through the hall of the second floor of the Phantomhive mansion. After he had managed to convince the Young Master to go to his office to get started on reading letters from buyers (which he had purposefully had hidden under his desk until Sebastian discovered them whilst cleaning the room), he decided it was time to awaken the rest of the Phantomhive guests. He had made sure that no other newspapers were lying around the mansion to avoid any panic, especially from Finnian. He walked to Maylene's room first, and, bracing himself for whatever foolish antics the young maid would display upon seeing his face, he gave 3 sharps raps to the door.

As he expected, the maid was at the door immediately, opening it only a crack.

"Who is it.." she said, rubbing her eyes. Then she gasped and flung open the door, revealing Sebastian's sexy form bathed in golden sunlight.

"AHHHHHHH! G-GOOD MORNING, S-SEBASTIAN-SAN!" she shrieked. She covered her mouth, embarrassed, but then let loose a wail upon realizing that she was still in her nightclothes, and, more importantly, not wearing her glasses.

"Ah…a good morning to you, Maylene," Sebastian said, cringing inwardly at the waves of love emanating from her, and how her eyes followed every tiny movement his body made.

Maylene still seemed to be in shock, covering her face as she asked quietly, "Wha…what brings you here today? U-usually you don't wake us up…um…_in person…"_

"A very good question, Maylene," Sebastian responded, ignoring the badly concealed squeal when her name was spoken, "Today we will be resuming our reading and writing lessons, as our newest Phantomhive guest is unable to do either. Now I suggest you get dressed quickly and go-!"

"YES, SEBASTIAN-SAN!" Maylene interrupted, raising her hand in some sort of solute before slamming the door in the butler's face.

Sebastian stared at the door, perplexed, before sighing and continuing down the corridor to Tanaka's room. This time he knocked lightly on the door and waited patiently for the house steward to rise.

"Good morning, Sebastian-sama! What brings you here today?" asked the old man in a cheery voice as he opened the door. He was his normal size in the mornings, just reaching Sebastian's neck.

"A very good morning to you, Tanaka-san," said the butler, "And to answer your inquiry, we may be receiving some guests later in the evening...but not the guests you and I may be expecting. If they arrive you must alert me immediately and I will attend to them, understood? And I trust you are aware that none of this information reaches the ears of anybody else?" This he said with a glint in his red eyes.

"Understood completely and transparently...oh-ho-ho!" exclaimed Tanaka, shrinking down to his mini-size.

"Thank you, Tanaka-san," Sebastian replied before moving on once more. Now he was approaching the end of the corridor to Finnian's temporary room. He lightly rapped on the wood of the door three times with his fist…no response.

"Finnian…it is time to wake up," he said sternly, knocking once more. No response. Sebastian sighed and braced himself, opening the door.

_Oh dear._

Finnian's bed was empty, the sheets were twisted up on the floor….and was that the smell of singed cotton? _Were those scorch marks on the carpet!_

_Idiot…they're all just idiots…_he reminded himself, eyebrow twitching in irritation.

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><p><em>Mmmm…it's so bright…where am I? <em>wondered a groggy Finny as he attempted to wipe sleep from his eyes. Sunlight was streaming through one of the windows, making him squint…wait…a window?

"AHHHHHHH! G-GOOD MORNING, S-SEBASTIAN-SAN!" a voice shrieked from out of nowhere, spreading throughout the entire mansion. Finny yelped, heart pounding. He vaguely processed a lump on the floor beside him mumbling, "Arg…it's too early, kid!" before Finny threw a (very soft and nice-smelling) pillow at it.

"OI! What are you doing, damn brat?" roared Bard, flinging the sheets off of his body as he hurled the pillow back at Finny, who caught it and stared at him. Bard stared back. Finny's eyes widened upon recognition of the cook who had comforted him and let him sleep in his bed.

It had been a night without nightmares for him…the first he had ever had in years.

Suddenly, the door of the room swung open. Finny swore that the temperature of the room dropped 20 degrees. Sebastian was standing in the doorway, and even the sun seemed to be afraid to get near him, as there seemed to be a dark aura deflecting any rays of sunlight that had hoped to illuminate the butler's body. Bard slowly began inching his way back as Sebastian made his way into the room, the butler's shadow creeping closer and closer to where the two servants were. Finny even raised his sheets to cover his face, as if it could stop the offending man from getting any closer.

"Finnian…I _cannot_ express enough how fortunate you are that the Young Master has _generously _provided both a home and the upmost safety for your person. Therefore I must _insist_ that you stay in places where you are supposed to be, so that we may not…_lose _you," Sebastian said, words dripping like poison from his lips. The hairs on the back of Finny's neck stood up as he remembered how he had almost burned down his room last night. All he could do was nod vigorously as he clutched the sheets even tighter.

"Wait, h-hold on a minute!" Bard exclaimed angrily, "Sebastian-san, don't blame the poor kid; I was the one who let him in and convinced him to stay…he's only been here for a _day, _do you really think leaving him alone at night will help wear off the damage that's already been done to him! As I recall, you had mentioned that he was always kept in isolation where he was before! He had a bloody _nightmare _for chrissakes; I wouldn't blame him for needin' a little bit of company!"

Finny had finally dropped the sheets and was gaping at him, although his cheeks had turned inexplicably pink. Sebastian was even showing the slightest hint of surprise. Bard felt the colour drain from his face as he realized what he had just done. No one challenged the butler and lived. _No one._

Bard shut his eyes, preparing to die as Sebastian rounded on him with an outstretched hand. Finny covered his face.

Nothing happened. Instead, Bard opened eyes to see Sebastian offering him a hand to help him stand. Bard took it hesitantly, and was pulled to his feet.

"What…you-you..what-WHAT-?" he spluttered.

"Thank you for your concern, Bard," said Sebastian, still sporting that terrifyingly perfect smile, "I suppose I had not taken our young Finnian—_Finny's_ psychological state into account." Here the butler paused, thoughts returning to a time when Ciel still woke up screaming from nightmares after wearing a mask of false stoic confidence throughout the day. He would often bring the Young Master a cup of warm milk or tea to calm the boy's erratic thoughts and memories. Sebastian returned to the present when Bard cleared his throat uncomfortably.

"Ah…now then," the butler said, also clearing his throat, "I must ask you, Finny—" (goodness, he was going to have to start getting used to using that silly nickname for the boy) –"to kindly refrain from going to other rooms in the nighttime unless you notify me first. It's for…precautionary reasons." At this he shared a glance with Bard, who nodded in understanding.

"Uh…yeah…what he said. Some of the rooms here aren't…um…the safest," Bard chipped in.

"Y-yes, Sebastian-san…and Bard-san!" piped up Finny, "I'm sorry for what I did…it won't happen again!"

"No worries. Now today you will begin lessons with me. You will eat breakfast promptly and report to the library. I trust that Bard will show you the way," Sebastian said, and then finishing with a bow, "If you two will excuse me," and left the room. Bard let out a sigh of relief, and then looked over at Finny.

_Why the hell was the kid laughing?_

The boy was holding a hand to his mouth to hold in his giggles, and his eyes were watering.

"Oi! What's so funny?" demanded Bard, growling.

"I'm …I-I'm just happy, that's all!" Finny exclaimed, finally letting bright laughter escape from his mouth.

"WHAT'S THERE TO BE HAPPY ABOUT!"

But Finny wouldn't answer. Golden sunlight framed the boy as he threw his head back, genuine happiness gracing his face at last. Bard decided that he liked it when Finny was happy. It was as if he was seeing Finny's true self finally revealing itself from being concealed by the traumatic experiences that had beset him before.

And before he knew it, Bard was laughing as well.

Sebastian stood outside the door, brow twitching once more as the loud laughter coming from the two servants echoed throughout the entire mansion.

_Remember..they're all just idiots…truly idiots…_

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><p>As always, reviews are greatly appreciated.<p>

Until next time,

-Jay


	6. Feeding the Flame

Long time, no see! I shall waste no time with my little intro. Enjoy the chapter!

Disclaimer: I own nothing except my OCs (which you will meet in this chapter)

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><p><strong>Chapter 6: Feeding the Flame<strong>

"Please…l-let me go…I h-haven't done anything but f-follow your orders…"

_They took everything from me…_

The man struggles against thick straps that bind him to the table. Overhead the light from a single light bulb flickers rapidly, causing tears to sting the bloodshot eyes of the captive.

"You abandoned me in my time of need…"

The straps tighten; the captive's eyes bulge as he feels two cold hands grasp his throat. Panic rises in his throat; the onslaught of terror and nausea making him sweat and shake. Now he is sobbing frantically, his voice breaking, and pleading for his release.

"I did as you told me to! I worked from the s-sidelines, I k-kept my cover and carried out everything you t-told me to—MMPH!"

Cold hands release the throat and instead move up to the captive's mouth, and he can feel their hesitation as skeleton-like fingers drum on his cheeks.

He swallows, the lump barely forcing its way down his throat, and he awaits an inevitable punishment. He focuses on the steady _drip, drip, _of the leaky pipes because this, out of all things, is the only thing keeping him sane. It is the one thing in the room that he knows for certain, the one thing he can depend on, because he cannot rely on his heart to keep beating or blood to keep flowing through his veins and he cannot promise himself that he will stay alive, but he can assure himself that, even if he comes out in a bag, those same damn leaky pipes will keep dripping long past either of them are gone.

He's been focusing on the same flickering light for the past few seconds before he decides to look the man in the eyes, regretting the decision as soon as he makes it. They are cold, calculating, and oddly detached, as if he is a lab rat of mild interest and little purpose. The scar extending from his brow to his collarbone is illuminated from the light.

And then he sees it, the crinkling of the corners of the eyes, the arching eyebrows, and the sudden malicious stance, and he knows right then that he will die today.

And, like any caged animal would, he fights.

He strains against the straps holding him down like iron, and he squirms and convulses against them. It doesn't matter where he is or what is going to happen; all that matters is the primal instinct to flee or run, or _limp_ if he has to just to get away from those livid eyes, those merciless, black, eyes.

And he screams. It doesn't really matter what he's saying, what shameful sounds he's making. All he knows is that his lungs are burning and he feels flames in his chest, but he doesn't stop. He'll keep screaming until his lungs are cut out.

"YOU ALMOST RUINED EVERYTHING!" screams his captor.

_Hatred…hated blinding, deafening, numbing…_

The hands spread apart and grasp either side of the man's head.

"Please…please…"

"Do you not understand the severity of your carelessness!?" A slap to the captive's cheek. "One of the subjects _managed to escape!_ This could ruin the entire operation my father has been working on for DECADES! And it is because you allowed a mere _butler_ to enter the facility!"

_They burned everything to the ground._

The captive is trembling uncontrollably. He barely registers that the cold hands have left his head, and are now reaching for something out of sight.

Suddenly something is plunged into the captive's arm, and he begins to feel a sucking sensation. He realizes too late that his blood is slowly being drained from his body. He begins screaming again as another needle is plunged into his other arm. The strength to fight begins to fail him and he collapses against his restraints. He can only look in horror as his skin begins shrivelling up like a raisin, paling and revealing the outlines of bones.

"PLEASE S-STOP! I'LL DO ANYTHING…anything!" he babbles, his vision beginning to blur. His skin on his face is collapsing in on itself.

"Anything, you say?" There it was again, that scarred face accompanied by the dimming lights, and the _drip, drip_ slowly decreasing in volume.

"Anything…"

A dark chuckle.

"You have already done enough, my friend."

The cold hands return to either side of the captive's head, and squeeze.

_I will teach you true pain._

* * *

><p>Breakfast at the Phantomhive mansion presented Finny yet again with the impossible challenge of consuming as much food as was humanly possible. Of course, he had been itching to go outside again after he and Bard had dressed themselves (Bard was lending Finny some of his old garments until proper clothes could be purchased), but Bard insisted that that the boy experience the miracle that was breakfast in the Phantomhive mansion (mostly because Bard would be cooking it).<p>

"And to be honest, kid, I'm kind of worried of how you might react to being outside," Bard had explained, "I mean, you were crying your eyes out when I first met you yesterday, and you need a break from the tears."

To which Finny had retorted that he as crying out of happiness, but Bard would have none of it.

"You just need to let things fall into place slowly, okay? I promise you'll get to go outside today, but at least eat first! I am not letting you miss out on this breakfast! It's gonna be made by yours truly!"

Somehow Finny doubted that, remembering the specific tools Bard chose to prepare food with.

A few minutes later, Finny was seated in the cellar with the other servants (Bard had left Finny outside the door to run to the kitchen), and Maylene was fidgeting in her seat, constantly adjusting her glasses.

"Maylene, are you okay?" he had asked timidly to which Maylene had only nodded quickly, and resumed her actions.

His eyes had practically popped out of his head when Sebastian had appeared in the doorway (accompanied by a grinning Bard, who sported singe marks all over his head and arms). Maylene began blushing fiercely with an "Ohhhhh", wringing her hands in her lap. Sebastian was carrying platters of delicious biscuits, flapjacks, ham, bacon, and of course, Earl Grey tea.

"Leftovers," the butler had simply said, and exited the cellar.

_Leftovers!?_

"Eat up!" said Bard, showing pride in the food that Sebastian had obviously made all by himself (Bard insisted that he had at least helped make the bacon, which did look a bit burnt).

And so Finny was forced to swallow his guilt of fortune (for he truly felt guilty for eating the food of kings, sleeping in beds that felt like clouds, and bathing in perfect temperature water without contributing his own share of labour), and eat the delicious food.

He was finishing his second round of biscuits and about to drink his tea when the door to the cellar swung open, revealing the young earl himself.

"Stop!" Ciel commanded, pointing a finger at the latest addition to the Phantomhive servants. All of the servants froze: Maylene was about to cut herself a piece of toast, Bard was in the midst of chewing and was staring with his mouth wide open, Tanaka was mid-transformation to mini-Tanaka, and now resembled a deflated balloon, and Finny was just lifting his teacup to his mouth.

"Sebastian, come here this instant!" shouted Ciel, causing the servants to start. In a blink of an eye the butler had magically appeared by the young master's side.

"Finny…what do you think you are doing?" asked Ciel quietly.

What had he done? Was he not supposed to eat the food after all? Was he going to be in trouble for leaving his room in the middle of the night? Was he to be sent back to the institution? A thousand questions and apologies were racing through the boy's mind, but before he could voice any of them, Ciel walked up to him, grabbed his hand, and removed the teacup from it.

"Sebastian! Have you not instructed Finny how to properly drink tea?" Ciel was practically seething at this point, teeth clenched in irritation. At once the tension in the room broke at the young master's statement; Maylene and Bard's eyes were filling up with tears as they tried to hold back their giggles.

Sebastian looked truly dumbfounded as he explained, "Ano…bocchan…I assure you it was on my agenda for him, but I truly thought that…_more pressing_ matters concerning his situation be attended to first."

"Damn butler," muttered Ciel under his breath, "Sebastian! Under no circumstances will anyone in this household drink tea in such a…_barbaric _way. No matter who it is, anyone who steps foot in my home will drink tea properly, for if we cannot even perform such a task, how are we supposed to be known as the Queen's watchdogs?"

The young master looked completely serious, yet Finny could see the butler put a hand in his mouth to stifle what seemed to be laughter.

"Forgive me, bocchan, I shall…do my best not to forget such a trivial thing next time."

"Damn right you will," mumbled the young master, rubbing his temple.

"Finny, you are to hold your cup like _this," _said Ciel, demonstrating the proper technique for holding a teacup, "and lightly sip. They might have not served you tea where you were being held previously—_those barbarians_—but here tea is both a delicacy and a drink of the nobles. Tanaka-san shows exemplary tea manners, for example."

"H-hai," stuttered Finny, attempting to mimic Ciel's hold on the teacup. He proceeded to sip lightly, and to his surprise, he saw the young master's expression lift—if only for a second—to form the slightest hint of a smile.

"Not bad," he said, then, turning to his butler, "Sebastian, I'm going upstairs. Bring me something to eat after you inform everyone of what needs to be done today."

"Yes bocchan," Sebastian said, bowing. When Ciel had left the room, he turned to Finny, who was still fumbling with his teacup attempting to form the same grasp.

"Finnian," he said, presenting the boy with a slip of paper, "I'll let you do the honours of reading today's list of tasks." Sebastian's eyes were narrowed as Finny hesitantly took the paper. This was a test.

"A-ano…" Finny's ears and cheeks flushed a bright red he stared at the strange symbols on that tiny piece of paper. He felt himself breaking into a cold sweat as the hands holding the paper began to shake. He licked his lips. "Ah…"

"Finnian, are you able to read this?" Sebastian asked quietly.

"N-no…"

"Ah…I see. Finnian, are you able to read or write at all?"

There was no hiding the humiliation that caused Finny's shoulders to droop.

"No, Sebastian-san…"

Bard's eyebrows were raised in confusion and Maylene's expression turned into sympathy for the boy.

"Well!" Sebastian said, clapping his hands, "Then we will start your training as a Phantomhive servant by learning how to read and write. For surely a Phantomhive servant who can't read or write isn't worth his salt." The mood seemed to change instantly as Maylene and Bard leaped from their seats.

"Yeah, kid! We'll teach ya how to learn your letters and such. Sebastian taught us, right Maylene?" said Bard, grinning while placing his hands on either side of Finny's chair.

"H-hai! Sebastian is a wonderful teacher and we'll make it fun for you, Finny!" responded Maylene, smiling.

"Excellent!" said Sebastian with a smirk, "We shall commence with your lessons once you have all finished eating."

Finny couldn't help but gulp as the smirk on the butler's face seemed a little bit _too_ happy.

* * *

><p>Everything is going to plan smoothly so far. The body has purposely been left behind—he has nowhere to hide it, and it is a sacrifice he has to make. The coach he managed to steal is big enough to fit all of his remaining supplies. The horses reared up in fear initially, detecting the scent of blood, but they were quickly controlled.<p>

He has moved into a new village, and has managed to find a small cottage on the outskirts. In this place no one asks who he is—perhaps no one cares. The village is a dismal one—people out on the streets which reek of human and animal waste—but it will have to do. One of the rooms inside the cottage has been transformed into a mini laboratory, where he now spends most of his time.

Blood stained hands begin to shake uncontrollably as the captor begins to laugh now, a quiet chuckle growing into maniacal howls. He holds up one of the many viles filled with blood of his latest captive, the blood that contains the last remaining vaccine mixture that he had previously administered to all of his workers.

With this blood, there is still hope to keep this project alive.

There is still one problem, however…

_One of the subjects is still alive._

It will take just one person, one survivor of the previous experiments to ruin years of research, testing, _progress._ One bloodstained hand comes up to trace the scar running from his right eye to his neck—a harsh reminder of the danger that comes with human experimentation, no doubt.

He grits his teeth in anger, not caring about the blood now smeared on his face. His movements are frenzied as he fills a syringe with the blood of his former captive—his former assistant.

_I will find you, S-012…_he thinks as he closes his eyes, and plunges the needle into his arm.

* * *

><p>"Wrong again!" snapped Sebastian, rapping Bard on the head with a metre stick. Finny gulped. The three servants had been sitting in the Phantomhive library for hours learning how to read and write. Unfortunately for Finny, he quickly found out that he was terrible at learning how to do both. After going through the painstaking process of learning the alphabet, Sebastian had ordered Finny to sing it over and over again—Maylene and Bard had managed to match the letters to an old French tune, which made learning it a bit easier, but also meant the tone-deaf boy was aggravating the ears of everyone in the room.<p>

After that, it was time to write it down, which presented a whole new plethora of problems for the boy. Sebastian had helped Finny wrap his fingers around the tiny thing called a pencil (the butler's hands felt like ice, even though they were gloved), but failed to remember Finny's souvenir from the institution—his incredible strength.

Fourteen snapped pencils later, Sebastian had resorted to a pen, and subjected Finny to learning how to simply write his name ("I fear that any more letters may result in more broken writing utensils," Sebastian had said, brow twitching).

Finny was still working on his writing while Sebastian had moved on to the other servants. Bard had earned the slap from the metre stick because he had failed to correctly copy down the sentence Sebastian had recited more than five times. He had now moved on to Maylene, who was working on reading written sentences. She was blushing and fidgeting as she attempted to stutter what Sebastian had written down in his (perfect) handwriting.

"The…t-the quick b-b-brown fox…um…the-the quick brown fox j-j-j-JUMPS! HE JUMPS! The quick brown fox jumps over the…the…the la-la-lazy..t-the lazy..d-d…d…"

"Woof," Sebastian said next to her ear, perhaps as a helpful hint. Maylene yelped, sitting up straight in her seat.

"THE QUICK BROWN FOX JUMPS OVER THE LAZY DOG!"

"…Good," sighed Sebastian, rubbing his temple. He began walking back over to Finny, who started when he saw Sebastian's shadow approaching.

"May I see your progress, Finnian?" he asked coolly. Finny shakily handed the butler his best attempt so far. Sebastian glanced at it, then sighed for the umpteenth time.

"Close. You wrote F-U-N-N-Y, which spells 'funny,' not 'Finny.'"

Finny heard Bard stifle a giggle, but yelped when he received another rap to the head from the butler.

"I'm-I'm sorry," said Finny, hanging his head.

"Your spelling is off by one letter, but I expect better, Finnian."

"We've been in here for how long now?" muttered Bard, rubbing his head. Suddenly, Finny sat up straight in his seat.

"Three hours, sixteen minutes, fifty-two seconds," he replied in a monotone voice, eyes going blank. Silence filled the room, only the ticking of the clock being heard. Both Bard and Maylene had their mouths wide open. Even Sebastian seemed perplexed, which was saying something. He furrowed his brow, thinking.

"Finnian, how long were you contained in the research institution?" he asked slowly.

"Seven years, eleven months, two weeks, and six days," Finny responded in a heartbeat. He had changed completely now. His eyes were narrowed, mouth set in a thin line. The light that was shining in his eyes had disappeared. He was staring right into the eyes of the butler.

"S-Sebastian-san, what…what's wrong with him?" whispered Maylene, fear evident in her voice.

"I'm not sure…" answered Sebastian. However, now Finny was staring past Sebastian at something else. Sebastian followed his gaze to something sitting on one of the many bookshelves in the room. He walked over until he saw the object in question, which happened to be a portrait. He frowned, picking it up and walking back to Finny. He was going to regret what he was about to do, but it could help.

"Do you know who this is…S-012?" he asked, staring right into Finny's eyes.

At once Finny screamed, his stony expressions replaced with one of absolute terror. He was blinded with fear, anger, trauma…without thinking, he pulled back his fist, then slammed it into the portrait frame. Glass shattered, and Finny's fist came into contact with Sebastian's stomach, who stumbled backwards, surprised.

No one was able to make Sebastian stumble backwards.

Maylene was screaming, and Bard lept from his chair to try to control the now catatonic Finny. He grabbed his shoulders, but realized his mistake too late when Finny sent him flying into a bookshelf.

"Stop it…STOP IT!" Maylene shrieked, and then the door of the library burst open, revealing a slightly out of breath Ciel.

At last, Finny came to his senses…Maylene's screams had done it. He barely registered blood dripping from his glass-filled knuckles. He could see Sebastian bent over, seemingly having the wind knocked out of him, Bard groaning in pain, struggling to remove a pile of books that had fallen on him, Ciel-bocchan's expression of utter confusion, and poor Maylene trembling from head to toe.

"…I think we will conclude today's lessons," Sebastian said quietly, picking up more shards of glass from the floor. "Maylene, tend to his injuries…I need to have a word with bocchan."

He gave a look to Ciel, who nodded slowly, before they both exited the room.

Finny slumped to the ground, feeling sick. He felt two pairs of arms wrap around him before he closed his eyes and submitted himself to tears.

* * *

><p>The door of the Scotland Yard headquarters burst open, a man running to a table in the middle of the room and dropping a newspaper onto it.<p>

"Sir, have a look at this, see! A body has been found!"

"What did you say? A body?" A man with a beard and top hat grabbed the paper, eyes scanning rapidly.

"Yes! It was found just this morning! Completely drained of blood!" responded the other, a man with short auburn curly hair.

"WHAT? Who was it? Where was this?"

"I don't know who, but it was found a few miles away from that research institution, the one that burned to the ground!"

"Excellent! This is wonderful news! Um, er, I mean, it's a shame for the dead person, but it's finally a clue in this case! Who is it though…wait!"

A finger pointed to one cloaked figure who had been quietly sitting in the corner of the room the entire time.

"You would recognize the face of the kidnapper, right? Along with his assistants? Come here and see if this person matches the face of any of his assistants!"

The figure rose swiftly, and silently crossed the room to where the newspaper was. The hood of the cloak was pulled back, revealing jet-black hair and a pale face still partly hidden in shadow.

The figure stepped back.

"The man in this picture is Dr. Vincent Vingrine," a soft male voice said. The other two men gaped in disbelief.

"_The _Dr. Vincent Vingrine? You don't mean-!"

"That's exactly what I mean," said the male, "Apparently he survived the fire—but not for long, as you two can see."

"Thank you!" the curly-haired man said, walking forward to pat the raven-haired man's back, but was met with air as the man pulled back, saying quietly, "Please refrain from touching me."

The other seemed taken aback, but quickly recovered, saying, "This is a major step forward in finally cracking this case! We're getting closer…I can feel it!"

The man with the top hat stepped forward as well, smiling.

"You have helped us tremendously so far," he said, removing his hat, "We can only hope you will continue to help with our investigation…Ren!"

* * *

><p>Thanks to all of you who are still reading and reviewing this fanfiction!<p>

**IMPORTANT NOTE: This fanfiction will be on hiatus until further notice. I am working on improving my writing style with a few more fanfics, which you can see on my profile. I plan to return to this fanfiction and revamp it soon!**

Until next time,

-Jay


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